Just curious what yardstick you use to rate these players? Have you watched a lot of tape on these guys, or read about them, or what? I just can't wrap my head around your rating of Wilson. You at least have Nassib 7th so I agree with you there. Not sure why you have Colby Cameron ahead of anyone, that guy is horrendous I wouldn't even sign him as a UDFA with no guaranteed money.

Just curious what yardstick you use to rate these players? Have you watched a lot of tape on these guys, or read about them, or what? I just can't wrap my head around your rating of Wilson. You at least have Nassib 7th so I agree with you there. Not sure why you have Colby Cameron ahead of anyone, that guy is horrendous I wouldn't even sign him as a UDFA with no guaranteed money.

Many of these players I have spent extensive time watching game action and for those players who it's more difficult to find footage of, I factor in part of their evaluation on their performance during post-season action.

I think this is my fourth or fifth year of posting my own rankings on prospects and I spend more time on the draft than I probably should.

Many of these players I have spent extensive time watching game action and for those players who it's more difficult to find footage of, I factor in part of their evaluation on their performance during post-season action.

I think this is my fourth or fifth year of posting my own rankings on prospects and I spend more time on the draft than I probably should.

So in your opinion what makes Tyler Wilson better than Matt Barkley for position rankings and better than Eric fisher and Luke joeckel overall? I mean, I've watched a ton of Wilson and Barkley and I don't even think its remotely close, Barkley is just head and shoulders above Wilson at everything an NFL starting qb should have (I.e. accuracy, pre-snap reading, going through progressions, etc.).

So in your opinion what makes Tyler Wilson better than Matt Barkley for position rankings and better than Eric fisher and Luke joeckel overall? I mean, I've watched a ton of Wilson and Barkley and I don't even think its remotely close, Barkley is just head and shoulders above Wilson at everything an NFL starting qb should have (I.e. accuracy, pre-snap reading, going through progressions, etc.).

I have been thru it many times, I view Tyler Wilson as a "franchise" caliber quarterback. Wilson has good size, an above average arm, the best pocket presence of any quarterback in the draft, and he's the only signal caller in the draft with "IT". Wilson possesses that confident swagger on the football field, much like a Brett Favre or Tony Romo.

I'll edit this later and comment on a couple players you have ranked. A couple that I think are too high like Wilson, Pugh... And a couple players that I just want to mention.

EDIT:

Justin Pugh of Syracuse is interesting. I like him a lot. He's a technician with left tackle feet. He was a great college player. But his short arms are going to be an issue. I loved Bryan Bulaga just about as much as any OT I have ever seen. I ignored his arm length concerns even though it would show up on his college tape as a detriment. He has not played up to my expectations, and I think a major reason why is due to his arm length. Pugh gets jacked up a lot and struggled with physical pass rushers. I don't know if he's going to have to kick over to the right side (he's a natural left tackle), or inside to guard. Either way, I think he'll have to move away from his comfort area. I think he has Top 20 talent but arm length is a major issue with me. If he had 34 inch arms (instead of 32), then I'd have him ranked him just as high as the Top 3 LTs.

Tyler Wilson would scare me for one reason and one reason only: Bobby Petrino. Wilson's breakout junior season came in Petrino's system. It's a great system and a lot of college QBs have put up huge numbers in it. Wilson's junior season compared to his senior season is similar to Brian Brohm's decline when Petrino left Louisville. Aside from that, Wilson never really jumped out at me as an elite QB prospect, or even close to it. He's got some arm talent, but he's limited as a thrower (vertically). I think he has some starting potential, but I group him similarly with Matt Barkley. I think they're among the Top 5 QBs in this draft. Mostly because of everything but their limited physical tools. He's more of a 3rd or 4th round prospect. As is Barkley. I don't expect to see either starting in the NFL. They look like backups that are scheme dependent. Could they start in a pinch and win a few games as a stop gap? I think that would be their highlight.

But EJ Manuel surprised me the most during the Senior Bowl. He looked like he was head-and-shoulders better than every other QB out there (including Wilson who didn't throw it passed 10 yards). He really surprised me. In a class of QBs that lacks a true standout, that week was enough to push him up the board for me. Eric Fisher and Lane Johnson earned money and recognition that week. Manuel did the same. In a class of QBs where no one stood out all year long, Manuel finally did. I don't know how you have Landry Jones ahead of him. Weren't they both at the Senior Bowl? I don't know what anyone sees in Landry Jones. Manuel has as much potential as any QB in this class, athletic ability and quality intangibles. His tape was too inconsistent and he made some throws that had me shaking my head, but he has almost everything you look for in a 1st round pick. If his tape was better / more consistent, I think he'd have a chance at the Top 10 overall.

I like where you have Dee Milliner. I think he's overrated. Alabama's recent track record with corners is also a growing trend of concern, and Milliner is going to have break this recent streak. During some of the drills at the Combine I thought he looked pretty raw / bad. His speed is nice and I think people started pumping him up because of it, but from watching him in games... speed never looked like an issue to begin with. I don't really care for his technique at all. I think he'll be worthy of a first round draft pick, but not a Top 10 draft pick if he does indeed go that high. His ball skills are atrocious and his footwork scares me. He does mirror as well as any corner in this class, but that was at the college level.

If DJ Hayden didn't have the injury concerns, then I think he could have been a Top 10 pick and the first CB off the board. He's a playmaker with some of the best ball skills in this draft. He has size, speed and tackles well. There really isn't much he's missing. I'd probably gamble on Rhodes over him due to the concerns over health even though I like Hayden's game tape more than any CB from this class. 3 INTs returned for TDs in less than two years.

From what I saw of Phillip Thomas I don't see why he's regarded as a Top 5 safety. He never seems to be in the middle of the action, or he was always late to the action. He seemed like he was going through the motions and not playing at full speed. He's a big safety and he can lay some big hits, but his impact plays were few and far between. I was disappointed with what I saw from him.

We both have been high on Jonathan Cyprien for a long time. If he ran in the 4.5s I'd be putting him in the same tier as Sean Taylor, Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu. Those were my three favorite safety prospects and Cyrprien is not far behind. His combination of size and power in the box plus his range as a ballhawk... I don't think there's anything he lacks. Other than elite timed speed, Cyrprien has almost everything you look for in a safety. I think he can switch between free and strong. His college and level of play obviously hurt him, but the kid has flashed great potential during his college career and at the Senior Bowl where he looked like the best defensive back there. He can cover TEs and looks natural in man coverage. I don't know. I don't know why he isn't the consensus #1 safety prospect this class. Unless I'm dead wrong about him, I just don't know what part of his game is keeping out of first round talks. I think he'll be the third or fourth safety off the board, and probably in the early part of round 2, but I think a lot of teams are going to look back and regret not taking him or taking someone else over him. He's in my Top 5 overall, and I think it's a toss up between him and Sheldon Richardson for best defensive players this draft.

Alec Olgetree wouldn't even be on my board. Character is that bad. I get the feeling that he's going to go in the first round, but I think it's going to be to a team that doesn't ding character too much, or takes chances on players who fall due to character (i.e. Bengals, Rams).

Arthur Brown has Top 15 talent, but the guy is simply out of control most of the time, and he's going to go in the second round because of it. He plays with no discipline, no gap control and takes too many false steps. He gets caught out of position a lot, and it seems like he's just guessing out there. But when he guesses right he's downhill as fast as any linebacker you'll find. If a coaching staff gets him under control, and if he plays within the defense, then I think he could be a Lance Briggs type OLB. And I've never said any OLB prospect has Lance Briggs kind of potential. But Arthur Brown has special skills and incredible athleticism. And he takes on linemen. I have him high based on his potential, which I believe is special. He's rated highly by most, but it doesn't seem like he's viewed as a potentially great player. And I think he will be despite being very annoyed with him half of the time. I think he's one of the most talented players in this draft.

Kiko Alonso is in a similar boat as Brown. I think he's just as talented as any linebacker you are going to find. Disturbing character concerns and lack of maturity knock him down into the second or third round, but his game tape is indicative of an impact player and first round draft pick. These are my top two natural linebacker prospects.

Manti Te'o is a close third with Alonso. His instincts are as good as any linebacker I have ever seen at the college level. He is limited physically (also struggles to disengage from blockers) and had the very odd catfish saga, which, all combined, will probably drop him into the second round, but he's going to be an above average pro for a long time. Those are my Top 3 LB prospect in this draft, and consider them all first round players, but I don't think any of them will go in the first round. A very odd draft for LBs.

Maybe I'm just completely wrong about DJ Fluker, but the Top 10 hype is nothing but a fabrication of the top three offensive tackles potentially going so fast off the board. He looks nothing like a first rounder to me. I think I heard Mayock compare him to Loadholt. A good player, but a run heavy right tackle only. The difference between Johnson and Fluker is astronomical to me. Heavy feet and he's going to struggle with speed. He's more scheme specific. More of a late first round prospect, not a lottery pick.

This is an interesting group of TEs. I like the Golden Domer, Tyler Eifert, the most because of his ball skills and natural leaping ability / high pointing of the football. I think he wins contested battles at an elite level. He's just such a good hands catcher, and he makes play after play in traffic. His issues are lack of elite speed and an inability to gain separation in man coverage. Most of his catches are contested, and I think he'll struggle early in his career against man coverage, but he can dominate zone coverage. A natural receiver and very advanced, but the one concern I have is separation against man coverage. He's also a solid, willing blocker. But his size and body control is close to elite for TEs. By far the most NFL ready TE in this class. An easy first round prospect and supremely gifted.

Zack Ertz is a little overrated. I think he's the fourth best TE in this draft (from the few I've seen), and more of third or fourth round prospect. He's a really good route runner and has the exact opposite problem that Eifert has. He excels against man coverage and looks good flexed out wide against corners. He can simply beat them with route running. Eifert has to body out corners and use his size / leaping ability, which is a great attribute that Ertz doesn't seem to posses. Ertz also does little after the catch and his ball skills / high pointing of the ball seem below average. I've also seen him drop too many passes for my liking, and he fails to make contested catches on a routine basis. His scheme also helped quite a bit getting busted coverages and open looks on play action. I think he has bust potential. More of a tweener. A WR in a TEs body. His blocking is going to have to improve if he's ever going to earn a late first or early second round selection.

Travis Kelce flashes first round talent. He looks fluid and very good after the catch. His game speed also looks good. He's two dimensional and a very good run blocker. He can be a starting TE from day 1 because of his ability to stay on the field on all three downs. His route running is merely average and he needs to develop that area of his game, but his physical tools are very impressive. He has so much upside. He's splitting hairs with Gavin Escobar with me. They're two very different players where Escobar is similar to Eifert, but really lacks speed and a burst. He looks like he plays at one speed and has no acceleration in and out of his breaks, which is by far my greatest concern. He looks great high pointing the ball and he has a tremendous catch radius, but his lack of speed, specifically game speed, is going to hurt getting open at the next level. He has as much natural talent as Eifert, but he looks slower on the field and not nearly as developed.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott Wright

I honestly believe Reggie Bush has turned into exactly the type of player I envisioned.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PossibleCabbage

I would like it if there were more successful black Quarterbacks in the NFL...

Quote:

Originally Posted by bearsfan_51

iamcandian lives in a cabin in the Yukon Territory and writes letters to railroad barons about the price of hard tack.

Quote:

Originally Posted by GatorsBullsFan

I could possibly see Matthew Stafford Dropping out of the 1st round

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoRavens

Tahj Boyd has the best fundamentals of any QB in this class, I think his game translates great to the NFL.